Use of a Hand-Held Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) to Self-Prompt Pedestrian Travel by Young Adults with Moderate Intellectual Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to evaluate use of a personal digital assistant (PDA) with picture, auditory, and video prompts as a portable self-prompting device to facilitate independent pedestrian travel by three high school age students with moderate intellectual disabilities. Using a multiple probe design across three destinations and their respective landmarks, the self-prompting device was evaluated for its effectiveness in increasing independent travel across multiple destinations. Results indicate that students were able to independently use the PDA to self-prompt pedestrian travel (walking) without the need for external adult prompting, to maintain use of the device over time, and to self-adjust the level of prompt used across the different pedestrian routes.